06 July 2012

EWSM Real Food Challenge Days 3 - 6

So far so good, although lunch today was a trial! I had been out all morning and by 1.30 I was starving and just happened to be next to the food court of a local shopping centre. You'd think that would solve the problem but it just complicated matters.

It was easy to skip Hungry Jack's and KFC. It was harder to walk away from Healthy Habits. You'd think it would be easy to find real food at a vendor called Healthy Habits but it wasn't that easy. In the end it was a multigrain roll with salad (no cheese or mayo) from Subway. At least it was reasonably cheap and actually quite nice. Fresh salad is always refreshing but I was so hungry I think I'd have eaten it if had been made of plasticine.

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we stuck to our meal plan and it was good.

Debbie emailed on Wednesday and asked if this challenge wouldn't mean hours in the kitchen. I am not spending any more time in the kitchen than I normally would. I'm not baking or cooking more than usual.

What has changed is some of the ingredients, they've been swapped for real food.

For example dinner tonight was supposed to be fish'n'chips but as we are eating real food and I haven't been to the shops this week - no fish! So instead it was Cheat's Burritos with MOO Taco Seasoning and homemade baked beans. They were so good the boys all came back looking for seconds, always a good sign :)

Instead of bought seasoning, I made up MOO Taco Seasoning. The aroma as you mix the spices together is amazing, and then when you add them to the hot pan - you have to smell it to believe it, so much more aromatic than the packets, even the branded packets, are. And the flavours are much better too.

Tomorrow I'll be at the ABC Shop at Eastland Shopping Centre from noon to 1:30pm and I am really looking forward to it. Fiona, the shop manager is just lovely and has done a wonderful job of advertising the event. When I called in today to see if there was anything I needed to bring with me she had a gorgeous display right at the front of the store and really cute flyers up. I feel so privileged to have such a lovely person go to so much effort to promote my book.

If you have a few minutes to spare and are in the area, please stop by. I'd love to meet you and have a chat.

4 comments:

That's easy - make it! Use tomato paste and mix with either water or milk to the consistency you need. I usually use 3 tablespoons of tomato paste to 400ml water. You can mix it with either fresh or prepared powdered milk too.

I made the Moo Taco Seasoning yesterday for the first time. The aroma is amazing. Both my kids are food critics and said it is better than the packet mix. I used one tablespoon in my mince mixture and they thought it was the right amount. Thank you! :) Michelle Fulcher

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This is my record of the daily challenges the Armstrong family faces as we live life the Cheapskates way - debt free, cashed up and laughing - and try to stay that way.

Here I talk about the little things I do that save us a lot of money and the bigger things that may only save a small amount. I share the things that work for us and the things that don't. I say it as I see it, so if I try something and think it's a dud, I'll tell you. And if I try something and it works, I'll share it with you.

You'll get an insight into a very frugal family living a very comfortable 21st Century lifestyle and I hope it encourages and inspires you as you make your journey to living life the Cheapskates way.